Thank You, Dan Rather - A One-Man Show

"For fifteen years I was a partner in the company, Patterson, Walz & Fox. We did music for hundreds of commercials as well as themes for NBC, CBS, Fox and others.

I co-produced the music and wrote some of the "bumpers" for Dan's show but my partner Rick Patterson wrote most of the main theme.So for thirteen glorious years I got big fat checks from BMI four times a year. What a gig! Till Dan started making some big anchorman no-nos.

For the most part, I was never crazy about writing music for clients. From the age of 16 I wanted to be a rock star. Write and record my own music. Sell albums and do concerts. By an unfortunate stroke of fate I ended up in the jingle biz. Then the checks started rolling in — and that's how they got me!

Now I could buy the computers, synthesizers, guitars and software I craved. Now I had the tools to make all the music I ever wanted to make. Except now I was working 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, writing for CLIENTS. A real trap. I've got all this stuff—but no time to use it for me."

That was the opening of my "Thank You, Dan Rather" blog explaining my major life crises and how it would bring me back to the life I originally set out to have. Once again I was FREE! Once again I had the creative juices flowing like when I was a kid. Once again... I was jobless.

Anyway, here's the link to the blog. It chronicles what it took to move from San Diego to Florida and produce a one-man show on very little money.